


Friendly Concern

by grus



Category: DCU, DCU - Comicverse, Green Lantern (Comics)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-27
Updated: 2012-12-27
Packaged: 2017-11-22 16:18:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/611775
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grus/pseuds/grus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Not long after his resurrection and return to his duties as Green Lantern Hal Jordan finds himself in a situation in which he can't keep his head above the water... literally.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Friendly Concern

**Author's Note:**

> Warnings for: mentions of alcohol and violence (nothing extreme), sex (somewhere between mature and explicit probably but I chose the higher one to be safe), mentions of past character death

The fight with the Shark had been far from easy. The monster's energy seemed to never wane. This relentlessness was it's key characteristic – Hal'd been dealing with it for more than a decade now. If it weren't for the ever increasing number of scars he'd put on it (including the latest ones around its maw, that could have only come from an exploding power battery) he would have thought the creature had bred and he was fighting a grandkid of its.

Things weren't looking good for Hal. The scrap was drawing out as he was trying to catch the beast alive. Sentient life was still sentient life, no matter how vile. The monster, of course, had very strong views on the catching part, and was doing its psychic, fear inducing routine in overdrive, successfully weakening Hal's constructs and shields. And the ocean, even with the full protection from the ring, wasn't exactly a Green Lantern's natural habitat (well maybe apart from a couple of the more watery sectors, but that's beside the point) anyway. Getting a fin to the face Hal promised himself to call Aquaman for backup next time, even though the guy would never let him live it down. And then he blacked out.

He awoke being carried through the air bridal style. His whole body jumped reflexively upon the realization, but the hold only strengthened. Hal looked up to see John's concerned face. 

“So the sleeping beauty finally awakens,” John laughed. “You airmen are a delicate breed.” 

Hal shot him a glare but was too tired to argue, and he wasn't the ingrate many thought him to be, so he did not raise to the bait. 

“Thanks for the save, John. At least I assume that's what happened. Mind filling me in on what went down after I took a snooze?” 

“The usual,” John sighed with exasperation. “The damned beast always knows when to make a strategical retreat. Apparently a blast that used up half of my charge was enough to send it on it's way, but not enough to knock it out... And I was too busy fishing you out to pursuit it.” 

“Well, a hero's got to have _some_ recurring villains. Too bad that mine are mostly C grade horror fodder,” Hal laughed mirthlessly. 

“Well you're still better off than the Flashes whose villains set up some sort of a social club for themselves,” John deadpanned. 

“Point taken,” Hal grinned, his spirits slightly improved. “Where are we going?” he asked, looking around. 

“I'm taking you home. The ring scan didn't show any serious injuries, but you'd better take it slow for the rest of the night.”

Hal wanted to protest but a new spell of dizziness overcame him, so just shook his head in agreement.

They reached Hal's building and John flew up to the open window, Hal left for such occasions. They climbed through it and willed their uniforms away, staying in civvies. Hal shuddered. Whereas he did not quite get soaked, as even the weakened shield had held the water at bay, he had an unpleasant feeling of sogginess around him. The fact that it was late fall didn't help either. Even Californian waters weren't exactly welcoming then. 

“I'll hit the shower. There's some beer in the fridge. Make yourself at home,” Hal offered, adding a few hand flourishes to make his point.

John just nodded and went to the kitchen. Hal went to the bathroom and examined his face in the mirror. Miraculously he didn't get a broken nose or a black eye from the hit, but his cheek was already bruising. Nothing like having to explain yourself at work, he sighed. Well he still got off lightly in comparison to the last round which had cost him a power battery, something that Salaak would never let him forget. 

He shrugged out of his clothes and put them in the laundry bin. He entered the shower and let the hot spray of water wash away the soreness. After a quick clean up, he put on a pair of sweats and a T-shirt and rejoined John who was sitting in the kitchen, drinking beer and looking through the paper. 

“Hey,” Hal brought a stool up for himself and plopped down next to John. “Would you like something to eat? We could order a pizza...” he offered.

John cut him off, “Maybe another time. I was in the neighborhood on business. A  
client wanted me to look around his plot, so I decided to drop in and have a word with you...” he looked at Hal sternly, but Hal knew him well enough to read it as concern. 

“I've been through this several times already. 'take it easy', 'you just came back from the grave, don't send yourself there again...' Let's just check that off, because I already know what you're going to say,” he shrugged. 

John's eyes narrowed, “Hal, the papers, heck even today's issue”, he pointed to the front page, sporting a huge picture of Hal carrying an entire gang of criminals in a construct bubble and a nonsensical caption to accompany it, “tell me how busy you've been.” 

Hal took the opportunity, “I _like_ to keep myself busy. Takes my mind off things I'm not ready to think about yet. And you've never known what a break is yourself. Heck, with all the soul searching and wandering through America back and forth I'd done back in the day, I'd call myself the slacker.”

John looked him steadily in the eyes, trying to read them. Hal willed himself not to avert them, even though scrutiny like this always made him uncomfortable. 

“Whatever you say, flyboy,” John gave him a pat on the back, breaking off the intense moment. “But don't be surprised if me, Guy and Kyle check up on you from time to time.”

“I thought you trusted me more. Hell, it's you guys who brought me back in the first place. And you're the one who spat in the goddamn Batman's face that he should get off my case,” Hal blistered. 

John put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, one which on first reflex Hal considered shrugging off, but to his own surprise let stay in place. 

“You know it's not about trust. I trust you with _my life_.” John paused to let it sink in. “We... _I_ just care for you, dumbass. And I know first hand how hard it is to get back in shape after something life changing...” 

John didn't have to continue for Hal to know what he meant, so he just shook his head in agreement and put his own hand on the one John had kept on his shoulder.

“Sorry for being a jerk, it's just that I don't want to disappoint all of you... and myself. I know most of the corps sees me as a traitor, I guess I do too...”

“But we... _I_ don't, and never will,” John grabbed his other shoulder and looked him in the eyes again, their faces now only inches away.

Hal could feel John's breath fanning his lips and almost shuddered at the intensity of John's gaze. He caught himself examining the golden flickers in his richly brown irises. With how stern and inaccessible John tended to make himself, Hal had never noticed how warm his eyes actually were, when they lost the green shine coming from the ring. 

Something in his face must have told John where Hal's mind had wandered off and he cleared his throat, uncharacteristically flustered and dropped his hands to his sides, pulling back. Hal then, not pausing to think what the hell he was doing, grabbed his hands and pulled him in for a brief kiss.

When their lips touched, John almost jumped, and the resulting smooch had been rather awkward, their noses only inches away from smashing into each other. When the kiss broke off (Hal had been the one to end it as abruptly as he started it), John sat there for a moment wide-eyed and slack mouthed. 

Hal let go of his hands and averted his eyes in shame. He was not shy in such matters, and although he'd never kissed a man before it's not like he'd never entertained the thought. But with John it was different, he was a friend, a comrade in arms, and to make matters worse one who had never fully recovered from the loss of a beloved wife. A woman, so unique that the corps mourned her to this day. It's hard to measure up to a memory like that. Great job, Jordan. 

“Sorry...” he muttered “I don't know what took over me, please just forget about it. I don't want to ruin...” 

John put a finger on Hal's lips to silence him. 

“Who said I _wanted_ to forget?” he gave Hal a warm smile. 

Hal felt relief wash over his heart, which just moments ago had been sinking. Still he needed to make sure. 

“You're not drunk, are you? I can always scan you with my ring...” 

John laughed in response. 

“After one beer? Maybe that's what it takes for an airman.” 

The familiar quip made Hal relax. 

“Then show me what you marines are made of,” he replied without skipping a beat, and leaned close to John. 

“See if you can handle it,” took Hal's face in his hands and pulled him into a slow and deliberate kiss. 

Without the rushing and uncertainty of the first one, the kiss was still far from perfect, but they were slowly finding a rhythm, and when Hal run his tongue over John's teeth, he gladly gave him access. The deep growl John made when their tongues entwined, registered clearly in Hal's mind and he made himself a promise to be the cause of it _many_ more times that night. 

As kiss grew more and more heated, Hal found himself moving precariously close to the edge of his seat, so scrambling for purchase, he put his palm on John's chest, only to feel the thundering of his heart. Hal listened in on the beat and wondered if his own ticker sounded like it wanted to jump out of his chest. It probably did, he conceded when John nipped at his lower lip with his teeth and Hal made a sound akin to purring.

At some point they finally needed to break off the kiss to _breathe_. Hal considered himself a pretty good kisser and John wasn't exactly inexperienced either, but the newness and strangeness of it all had made them forget the basics. Hal laughed inwardly at the fact that they were acting like frantic schoolboys, but he couldn't say that he minded it. 

He gave John a smile to reaffirm that this whole thing was indeed okay, or even more than okay, and that if they hadn't been short of breath, he'd probably have his tongue down his throat. John didn't hesitate to smile back and ruffled Hal's already messed up and still slightly damp hair. 

Before Hal could put it back in order, as he always did on reflex, John grabbed him firmly and pulled him into his lap. Hal, surprised by the action, tensed at first, not expecting John to want to take things this far this quickly. 

Noticing Hal's reaction John relaxed his hold immediately and scrambled to apologize. This time it was Hal who broke him off putting a finger on John's lips. 

“It's okay, John. I want this, I really do, you just took me off guard,” Hal laughed, and dipped his head, aiming for John's throat, which he started positively mauling. 

Again there was that growl Hal had liked so much the first time. He decided to keep a score from now on, at least as long as he could, and that probably wasn't going to be very long, considering the way John started rutting against him. Hal then decided that the clothes were getting very much in the way of things and drew away from John's neck, only to start fumbling with the buttons of his shirt. 

His movements were frantic and this was taking waaay to long for his liking, so running out of patience he tore the buttons off. 

“I'll sew them back on, boy scout's word,” he whispered in John's ear.

Instead of a quip in return he got a light bite on the earlobe as he was drawing back, which made him squirm in John's lap. He glared at John with mock indignation, but he looked unrepentant. In fact he looked pleased like the cat who ate the canary. It turned out Hal wasn't the only one keeping scores. 

Two could play this game. Hal wasted no time in assaulting the expanse of skin he had freed from the shirt. The nipping, sucking and fleeting touches made John's breathing ragged, in a way that made Hal soar with glee. 

John's patience had to wear thin at some point and when it did, he unceremoniously pulled at Hal's T-shirt, until after a lot of fumbling it was out of the way. The hunger in John's eyes as he sat back and took in the sight made Hal shiver and his skin burn under that intense gaze. But when John's eyes reached Hal's face a flicker of worry ran through his eyes, and he reached up to touch Hal's cheek. The bruise had grown significantly darker since Hal last examined it and was now clearly visible.

“This? Oh, that's nothing. It doesn't even smart. I'll put some ice on it later.” Hal rushed to ease John. 

“Why not now?” John asked with a mischievous smirk and made a construct hand wander to the freezer and take out a bucket of ice, which it then put on the table next to them. 

John took out a big and chunky cube, which he then touched to Hal's cheek. Hal jumped slightly at the contact, but then appreciated the coolness, soothing the bruise. Unlike what he said it did hurt slightly, but he'd been way past noticing it just moments ago. 

John had further plans for the ice, with which he started trailing Hal's face and then throat, leaving heated kisses on the cooled skin. Hal accentuated the kisses with yelps, hitches of breath and squirms. 

John laughed delightedly at his success, which caused Hal to make one of his trademark pouts. 

“I know I'm loud but you aren't exactly quiet yourself,” Hal pointed out drily.

“I wouldn't want it any other way,” John let the melting cube drop to the floor, and twined his fingers in Hal's hair, pulling him in for a tender kiss. 

One Hal eagerly returned even though he had been grumbling just seconds before. When they broke off, Hal sighed contentedly. He then caught John's eyes, while his hand trailed downward towards John's fly, and stopped inches from it while he waited for a sign. 

John gave him a sharp nod, and pulled his hand all the way down, making him cup the bulge in his jeans. Taking it as a yes, Hal fumbled with John's pants, to finally release his member. Hal looked at it appreciatively. It was impressively thick and already half-hard. Hal couldn't help but feel proud at having brought the reserved John Stewart to such a state. 

He took the member in his hand, enjoying how smooth and heavy it felt, and started stroking it earnestly, to bring it to full attention. John rewarded his efforts with a series of most delightful gasps, that Hal found oddly adorable. 

Then John pulled Hal closer by the neck and rumbled in his ear breathlessly. “Let me...” he trailed off but Hal knew what he meant. 

He shimmied out of his sweats, letting them fall to mid thigh and sat back in John's lap. John took to stroking just as eagerly as Hal had, taking his time to smear the pre-come around the tip, which made Hal keen in his throat, abandoning all semblance of self control.

He couldn't wait any longer. He almost swatted off John's hand, and putting their lengths against each other, encircled them with his hand, stroking rapidly. John was clearly bigger than him but he could hardly mind it considering how damned good his cock felt against Hal's. Hal was equally pleased with how John seemed to be appreciating Hal's actions, based on how he was biting on Hal's shoulder to keep himself grounded. A sensation which Hal was surprised to enjoy. None of his exes had been much of a biter. 

After Hal wasn't sure anymore, nor did he care how long, his vision swam, a wave of pleasure washing over him, as he spilled on his own hand and John's chest. Only by sheer willpower did he continue to stroke John until he felt his release coat his hand and cock, before he slumped into his partner with all his weight. John then pulled Hal into a tight hug, nuzzling at his neck and the hair behind his ear, which made Hal giggle slightly. 

“Ticklish, are we?” John laughed and started puffing air on Hal's neck and earlobe. 

Hal just burst out laughing, not caring that this was first rate blackmail material, and swatted John on the arm playfully. John in retaliation assaulted Hal's lips in a searing kiss, that had all the promise of a second round. 

“I assume you'll be staying the night?” Hal grinned. 

“You can bet on it”, John returned the grin and pulled Hal closer again.

**Author's Note:**

> I dedicate this piece to Birdy who wanted John/Hal, so she got it (even if it took me very long to finish this).
> 
> This is my first attempt at writing porn and it probably shows xD But you never get better if you don't try :) Any feedback and constructive criticism is appreciated especially as English is not my first language. 
> 
> What else?  
> I haven't read much of John's stuff so I'm very sorry if he's out of character. Same goes for Hal actually (I've read much more of him but I still have some crucial things left). 
> 
> Why early vol. 4? Firstly, I love that era. Secondly, I know it well. Thirdly, this time was a wasted opportunity for John and Hal to interact more. Lastly, I wanted to reference the fight in which Hal lost his Lantern because the whole ordeal was hilarious.
> 
> Sharks actually live quite long (it varies depending on the species but for tiger sharks it's 30-40 years), so I guess what Hal means is that with its lifestyle (which consists of various superheroes punching it in the maw constantly... plus evolution could have impacted its lifespan?) it should be long dead. That or Hal doesn't know shit about sharks.
> 
> I'm sorry for making Hal need saving here. Seeing as a big part of the fandom thinks he's useless (which is not true of course, but so the hive mind has decided), I'm side-eyeing myself for going with such a plot. I guess I'll have to make up for it in another piece. 
> 
> Lastly a special thanks goes out to the creators of the Bollywood movie Baazi (1995). The scene with the ice cube was inspired by it. Go watch that flick by the way. It's campy as all hell but a lot of fun.


End file.
